Gas prices on Memorial Day weekend: What are the cheapest states to fill up your car?
The AAA has forecast that 38.4 million Americans will go on a road trip for the Memorial Day holiday. Here’s what gas prices look like across the nation.
Millions of Americans are getting ready to travel for the Memorial Day weekend with AAA predicting that this will be the busiest one in nearly 20 years. For those of you planning to get to your destination by car, you’ll be joined by some 38.4 million fellow road trippers, the highest number since the federation of North American motor clubs began tracking in 2000.
That will mean congestion on the highway, expect travel times to be 90% longer than normal warns Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at INRIX. However, at least the price of gas has been falling, with the national average just shy of $3.61 for a gallon of regular.
Albeit that’s slightly higher than it was this time last year. Not to mention that’s the national average, so some places like California you can expect to see about a dollar fifty more per gallon. The bright side though, other places are cheaper.
Gas prices on Memorial Day weekend: What are the cheapest states to fill up your car?
Drivers will find the most affordable gas around the Gulf Coast, except for Florida, the Southeast and up into the Plains states between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. The cheapest as of Friday 24 May was Mississippi slightly under $3.06 a gallon on average. Here are the ten cheapest states currently to fill up your car according to AAA:
| 1. | Mississippi: | $3.058 |
| 2. | Arkansas: | $3.094 |
| 3. | Oklahoma: | $3.123 |
| 4. | Kansas: | $3.132 |
| 5. | Louisiana: | $3.161 |
| 6. | Texas: | $3.166 |
| 7. | Missouri: | $3.196 |
| 8. | South Carolina: | $3.204 |
| 9. | Tennessee: | $3.204 |
| 10. | Alabama: | $3.235 |
At the other end of the spectrum are states in the West along with Alaska, Hawaii, Illinois and Pennsylvania.
California is the only state where the average price per gallon statewide is above $5.00.
Other states in the top ten highest priced states include Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Nevada and Illinois have gas prices ranging from nearly $4.80 down to almost $4.08. Rounding out the top of the list are Arizona, Pennsylvania and Idaho where a gallon of gas will set you back between $3.87 and $3.78 on average.